Weekly Bulletin: Staying connected as a church - 25 December 2022

Kia ora St John’s whānau,
 
This Sunday is Christmas Day!  
God declares that in this baby peace comes to earth.

If you can’t gather in the city, and you want to join the worship service via Zoom, here are the details to access the live-stream:
 
Zoom Meeting ID: 370 260 759
Passcode: worship
 
The link to join the Zoom worship service is below.

If using your phone: dial 04 886 0026 (Meeting ID: 370 260 759#, Passcode: 1560107#)

This is the link to the printable Service Sheet 

This is the last message for a while, as the Office staff have a break over January. The services will continue, and the online access will continue.

OTHER THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT...

CWS CHRISTMAS APPEAL

At Christmas we find ourselves part of the life-changing story of God’s great gift of love to us all.  Through Advent we rediscover the love that is at the heart of the universe.  It is this love that inspires us to live in hope, doing what we can to make our world a place where all people can live in dignity and peace.
Our Christmas Day Offering can be an act of hope, as we support the work of Christian World Service with their partner organisations around the world, to strengthen people’s dignity and peace.
There will be special envelopes provided during the Christmas Day service to make a donation; you can put your details on the envelope to receive a receipt from CWS.

NEW YEAR LUNCH 2023

January can be a long month with most of the church activities stopped over the Christmas period. Let’s have lunch together IN THE NEW YEAR 
WHEN: after church on SUNDAY 15th JANUARY. 
COST: $5 per person to help cover some of the expenses. 
All welcome!  Fun, fellowship and ice cream!
For any enquiries please contact Marg Gilkison. 

ELECTION OF NEW ELDERS

Notice is given for a Congregational Meeting on 29th January 2023 to consider the recommendation from the St John’s Session to elect Eldred Gilbert as an elder – to join the newly-elected elders Jason Fyfe and Nisha George.
Eldership in the Presbyterian tradition is a recognised role whereby a person commits themselves to spiritual leadership and care within a congregation, in the strength of the Holy Spirit. The nature of leadership is what the church understands as ‘servant leadership’ and it always seeks peace and unity. It is a consultative and collaborative style of leadership that pursues the welfare of the church into the future.

OFFICE CLOSURE

The St John’s Office will close over the holidays starting midday Wednesday 21st December 2022 and reopening the morning of Tuesday 24th January 2023.
During this time there will not be weekly messages, so please check the St John’s Facebook page for any current updates/alerts.
The usual Zoom link for joining the services online will continue (see above).

A child is born. A child for the world.
We celebrate the Saviour’s birth!

Allister